PHOENIX -- Arizona teachers said that on Thursday they will end a historic statewide strike that shut down schools for days if lawmakers pass a plan that offers big raises and increased school funding but that still falls short of their demands.
Organizers made the announcement Tuesday after educators statewide walked off the job last week and closed schools to demand higher pay and education dollars. Arizona's action followed a teacher uprising that started in other parts of the U.S. and was punctuated by a march of tens of thousands of red-clad supporters.
Those mobilizing teachers criticized a Republican-led funding plan but said it was time to go back to work.
"Our fight is not over, we have options," said Rebecca Garelli, a strike organizer. "But it is time for us to get back to our students and get back into our classrooms."
Republican Gov. Doug Ducey and GOP legislative leaders have agreed on a state budget proposal that could be passed into law this week but doesn't increase classroom resources as much as educators sought.
The plan moving through the Republican-led Legislature gives teachers a 10 percent raise next year and starts restoring some of the nearly $400 million in cuts to a fund that pays for supplies, repairs and some support staff salaries. It is expected to pass today, setting the stage for the walkout to end.
The governor has promised to bump teacher pay 20 percent by 2020 and restore payments to that fund to pre-recession levels in five years. Ducey had resisted giving teachers more than a 1 percent raise that he promised in January until teachers neared a strike vote. Then he came up with a new spending plan.
"We're glad the strike is coming to an end. We've been working exceptionally hard to pass this budget and get this money to teachers," Ducey spokesman Daniel Scarpinato said.
An Arizona grass-roots group that started in early March after West Virginia teachers won a 5 percent raise said it would not let off the pressure, despite the decision to go back to work. Before teachers return to school Thursday, they will hold walk-ins, dressing in red T-shirts and standing in solidarity.
After that, the long game is to push for a ballot initiative that creates new funding streams for education and to elect policymakers who support increasing school funding, said Joe Thomas, president of the Arizona Education Association, the largest teacher membership group.
The walkout began Thursday, shutting down most public schools. Two-thirds of Arizona's student population was still out of school through Tuesday, and some districts were expected to stay closed today.
Teachers have packed raucous rallies at the state Capitol for days, while others have helped care for students and tried to maintain community support.
A Section on 05/02/2018